Prompt: none (Xerxes's relationship with Shelly)
Rating: K
Warnings: None.
Just a musing piece.
What was Shelly, to him?
She was the spring sunlight, something gentle and radiant which passed through the cracks in his darkness, slowly warming him from within; she was the fall breeze, something sweet and clean which brushed over his wounded soul, slowly changing him from without. She was the beating heart which had never before been shown to him, a fragile life blossoming with strength he could never have imagined before, a savior he'd never asked for and yet needed above all things.
She was family in a way he'd never thought possible—mother and sister, caregiver and friend—and he is certain that he loved her.
It does not matter what kind of love it was—whether it was like that of a lover, of family, of a devotee before his angel, he felt love toward her like he had never felt for anyone before (he wouldn't know what kind; it no longer matters, either). It was able to warm him and change him, make a new whole of what had been shattered beyond repair; it was able to give him purpose (even if he had made some other excuse for what he'd live for).
He still loves her enough to let her tell him to live, even when he sees no value in his own life.
And when he sees her daughter stand strong and glow like she used to, he cannot help but feel that warmth once more—but it is different, now, a harsher (and no less beautiful) light which centers itself around him (he is nothing to shine such a spotlight on, and yet, that is exactly what she does). And sometimes, in the quiet of his mind, he wonders if she is looking upon the light she created with adoration still—and if he can ever live enough to fulfill her expectations.